- Date
- October 16, 1990, 11:00 local (16:00 UTC)
- Place
- Fort Wayne, IN
- Injuries
- 3 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N5499KCessna 172P
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report December 30, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19901016046289A
- Case key
- 14883
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The failure of the pilot to maintain an airspeed above stalling speed. Factors associated with the accident are premature rotation and the pilot's lack of recent total experience.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The accident airplane was observed climbing in a nose high attitude before pitching over and descending, left wing low, into the ground during initial climb after takeoff. Records show the pilot's total aviation experince to be 69 flight hours. His flight experience in the 90 days preceding the accident was .3 of an hour obtained the day before the accident. No mechanical defects were discovered in either the airframe or powerplant. Evidence shows that the tail tie down ring dragged as the airplane tracked off the left side of the runway before lifting off.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5499K
- Reported as
- Cessna 172P
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 17274164
- Airframe hours
- 2,816
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-D2J, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Bowman Aviation, Inc
- Last inspection
- Unknown · September 11, 1990 · 73 hours before
- Airport
- SMSD · Smith Field, runway 5, 3,110 × 100 ft, asphalt
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 21
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 69 total · 3 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 150° at 9 knots
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 63 °F, dew point 37 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- FWA, 15 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N5499K · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.